cowles



e. B. cowLm.

Piano Look.

(Model.)

Patented Feb. 8, 1881 N. PETERS, PHOTO-LIT" rrsn TATES ATENT m tes;

GEORGE B. COWLES, OF NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOE TO 1?. 86 F. CORBIN, OF SAME PLACE.

LO'C K.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 237,491, dated February 8, 1881.

Application filed August 16, 1880.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE B. GowLEs, of NewBritain, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Piano-Locks, of which the following is a specification.

Myinvention relates to piano-locks in which a vertically-moving slide, a bolt which moves both vertically and horizontally, a cam, and a spring are combined in a peculiar manner, and theobjects of my improvements are to produce a neater and better working lock, and to produce the same at a price which does not exceed the cost of ordinary locks for the same use. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a front elevation, with one lookplate removed, and with the parts represented in the unlocked position. Fig. 2 is a like view, with the parts represented in the locked position. Fig. 3 is a likeview, with the verticallymoving slide removed. Fig. 4 is a like view of said slide,and Fig. 5 is a side elevation of said lock.

A designates the lock-bolt; B, the cam for throwing the same, and C the spring for retaining the cam, and consequently the bolt, in either the locked or unlocked position, as shown respectively in Figs. 2 and 1. The cam B has an angular key-hole in its center, and is journaled by a trunnion in the lock-case. It has a long arm for acting upon the bolt, and a short arm for acting upon or being acted upon by the spring 0. The part of the bolt which faces the cam is so shaped that when in the unlocked position, as represented in Fig. 3, and without the slide, hereinafter described, onepoint of the bolt may rest upon the hub of the cam, and another point may rest upon the long arm of the cam, so as to prevent the bolt from falling down into the case beyond a certain point. The first impulse of the cam is to lift the bolt vertically, and next to move said bolt horizontally. The spring C is located at the bottom of the case and extends from corner to corner, as shown.

The parts so far described are old when considered by themselves without the slide. It

(Model) is also old to combine a bolt, cam, and spring of a very different construction, but which impart both a vertical and horizontal movement to the bolt with a vertically moving slide, both of which prior devices are hereby disclaimed.

I combine, not bolts, cams, and springs generally, but the bolt, cam, and spring herein described and represented in the accompanying drawings, with avertically-moving slide, asfollows, viz: D designates the slide. The boltA is made of less thickness than when it is used without the slide, so that the tongue at of the slide D may work in the same mortise with the outer end of said bolt. The slide is of a width from side to side of the case which will just fill the case, and thereby the slide is properly guided in its vertical movement. Projections are formed upon the sides of the slide, near the top, the shoulders I) b of which constitute stops which engage the bottom. of

slots in the sides of the case, as shown in Fig. 5, thereby preventing the slide from entering the case beyond a certain point. A pin, 0, is fixed to the lock-bolt A, and enters a horizontal slot in the slide D. This pin-andslot connection of the bolt and slide not only causes the slide to move vertically with the bolt, but when the slide is drawn into the case, as shown in Fig. 1, and rests upon the shoulders or stops 0 I), the pin 0 rests upon the lower wall of the slot in the slide, so that the stops 1) b limit the inward movement of the bolt, as well as that of the slide. This construction stops both the bolt and the slide in a firm and substantial manner, so that when their outer ends are polished off flush with the face-plate they will thereafter be stopped at the same point, so as to maintain the even and neat finish given them at first.

The bolt could be stopped by the cam, as in the old construction; but I prefer to limit the throw of the bolt through the slide.

If desired, instead of forming the shoulders or stops b b in the position shown, the narrow arms now shown upon the sides of the slide may be extended farther down to engage the bottom of the case at each corner.

It should be noticed that the spring C 00- oupies the bottom of the case immediately 11 b, in combination with the look-case, bolt A, IO under the bolt, so that the bolt cannot extend two-armed cam B, and the spring 0, occupydown to the bottom of the case to form a stop, ing the bottom part of the case, substantially as in the prior combination of bolt, slide, cam, as described, and for the purpose specified.

and spring. The cam 13 is made of a thick- 1 ness about equal to the combined thickness of GEORGE GOWLES' the bolt A and slide D. Witnesses:

I claim as my invention E. L. PRIOR,

The vertically-moving slide D, having stops SAML. BASSETT. 

